Juraj Slafkovsky scored twice in a three-point outing as the visiting Montreal Canadiens rode a four-goal first period to beat the Carolina Hurricanes 6-2 Thursday in Raleigh, N.C., in the opening clash of the Eastern Conference finals.
Cole Caufield and Phillip Danault both scored once and added an assist, while Alexandre Texier and Ivan Demidov netted goals for the Canadiens, who have won seven of nine road games during the playoffs.
Goaltender Jakub Dobes made 25 saves, and Nick Suzuki collected three assists.
Seth Jarvis and Eric Robinson scored for the Hurricanes, who lost for the first time in this year’s playoffs. Carolina has lost seven straight conference final openers and won only once in its last 17 conference final clashes.
Goalie Frederik Andersen stopped 16 shots. He had not surrendered more than two goals in any of the previous outings this spring.
Carolina not only swept their opposition in each of the first two rounds, but surrendered only five goals in total in each of those series.
Game 2 of the best-of-seven series will be on Saturday.
The affair kicked off with the clubs trading goals in the first minute. Jarvis put the Hurricanes on the board 33 seconds after the drop of the puck with a quick shot from the right circle, but Caufield replied at the one-minute mark when he buried an open chance from the slot.
Then it became even wilder. Danault put Montreal ahead with a breakaway at 4:04 during 4-on-4 play, and Texier made it a 3-1 game with a one-timer from the slot four minutes later.
Demidov netted Montreal’s fourth goal of the opening frame with another breakaway goal that had the Hurricanes and their faithful stunned.
Robinson provided the Hurricanes a much-needed jolt when he made it a 4-2 game by finishing a partial breakaway at 2:46 of the second period.
However, Slafkovsky restored Montreal’s three-goal edge at 7:05 of the third period when he used a toe-drag to elude a defender and tucked home a shot.
Slafkovsky’s empty-net goal rounded out the scoring. The Hurricanes managed only one third-period shot on goal.
Flyers prospect headed to Michigan
Philadelphia Flyers prospect Jack Nesbitt has committed to the University of Michigan, he announced on Instagram.
The 19-year-old center with the Windsor Spitfires of the Ontario Hockey League was drafted 12th overall by Philadelphia in 2025.
The 6-foot-4 Nesbitt had 25 goals and 58 points in 55 games in the OHL this season for Windsor.
Golden Knights ‘not fazed’ by favored Avs
The Vegas Golden Knights did what Los Angeles and Minnesota couldn’t in the first two rounds of the playoffs – beat the Colorado Avalanche on their ice.
Vegas stole Game 1 of the Western Conference finals with a 4-2 win Wednesday night. The Golden Knights will try to sweep the road trip when the teams meet for Game 2 on Friday night in Denver.
The Golden Knights improved to 5-2 on the road in these playoffs and 16-4-1 overall since head coach John Tortorella took over with eight games remaining in the regular season. They went from fighting for a playoff spot to three wins away from a third trip to the Stanley Cup Final and a potential second championship in their nine-year existence.
Vegas beat the Presidents’ Trophy winners with a strong forecheck and one unexpected goal source: Defenseman Dylan Coghlan scored the first playoff goal of his career in just his eighth NHL game this season.
“Our players aren’t fazed,” Tortorella said. “We’ve gone over how we want to play. It’s not changed from series to series, quite honestly. We’re trying to play our game, not worrying too much about countering off another team. We’re going to try to play our game, and I think they feel very comfortable in it.”
The Golden Knights were still without captain Mark Stone, who hasn’t played since Game 3 against Anaheim in the conference semifinals. Stone is dealing with a lower-body injury and doesn’t seem likely to play in Game 2.
Superstar Colorado defenseman Cale Makar also sat out Game 1 with an upper- body injury, just the second time in his career he missed a playoff game due to injury. Makar, who won the Conn Smythe Trophy when the Avalanche captured the Stanley Cup four years ago, skated at the team’s optional practice on Thursday but his status won’t be determined until Friday.
“We’ll see what tomorrow brings,” head coach Jared Bednar said after Thursday’s practice.
With or without Makar, Friday night is a near must-win for Colorado, which has been forthcoming all season that its only satisfactory finish is winning another Stanley Cup. The Avalanche struggled Wednesday night against the Vegas forecheck, but they found some room in the third period when they cut their deficit to 3-2 on goals by Valeri Nichushkin and Gabriel Landeskog.
Nichushkin’s line, which includes center Nazem Kadri and winger Ross Colton, generated chances. Kadri nearly scored in the final seconds of the first period, only to be denied with a great save by Carter Hart. Bednar said while the team struggled to create scoring opportunities, Nichushkin found success in the dirty area.
“Look where he scores his goal, and if you look at a couple of other chances he had, they’re right in the blue paint,” Bednar said. “Historically, that’s where Val tends to get his best chances.”
The Avalanche will need more from the top two lines, which were held down for most of the game. Nathan MacKinnon, who had just three shots on goal and was blanketed on most shifts, said his team needs to be better overall.
“We just weren’t sharp,” MacKinnon said afterward. “Execution was poor from everybody. Yeah, just got to be sharper than that.”
Ducks’ Terry to undergo hip surgery
Anaheim Ducks forward Troy Terry will undergo hip surgery after playing through an injury during the postseason, the team said on Thursday.
Terry, 28, was dealing with a chronic hip impingement but still managed to finish second on the team with 11 points (three goals, eight assists) in 12 playoff games.
The timetable for the two-time All-Star’s recovery and his status for the start of next season are unknown.
Terry recorded 57 points (19 goals, 38 assists) in 61 games during the regular season. He missed 11 games in January due to an upper-body injury and sat out nine games after the Olympic break due to an upper-body injury.
Terry has 342 points (135 goals, 207 assists) in 488 career games since making his debut in 2018. The Ducks drafted him in the fifth round in 2015.
Keller among PWHL Defender of Year finalists
Boston Fleet captain Megan Keller (Farmington Hills), teammate Haley Winn and the Vancouver Goldeneyes’ Sophie Jaques were named finalists for 2026 PWHL Defender of the Year honors.
The award is presented to the defender who showcases the most outstanding ability at the position throughout the regular season. A selection committee chose the finalists and the winner will be announced on June 16 in Detroit.
Keller, 30, matched a league record for the position with 22 points (seven goals, 15 assists) and led all defenders with three game-winning goals. She ranked second in the PWHL with an average ice time of 26:40.
Winn, 22, finished her rookie campaign with 19 points (five goals, 14 assists) and led all skaters in average ice time at 26:45. She finished fourth among league defenders with 45 blocked shots.
Jaques, 25, ranked second among blueliners with 20 points (nine goals, 11 assists) in 30 games for the expansion Goldeneyes. She was the only PWHL defender with multiple three-point games (two).
Renata Fast of the Toronto Sceptres won the Defender of the Year award last season over finalists Jaques and Claire Thompson of the Minnesota Frost.
In other PWHL news, Montreal Victoire netminder Ann-Renee Desbiens looks to become the first two- time winner of the PWHL Goaltender of the Year award.
Last year’s recipient was named a finalist along with Aerin Frankel of the Boston Fleet and Gwyneth Philips of the Ottawa Charge.
Wolves forward suspended for Griffins’ game
The Chicago Wolves will be without defenseman Charles Alexis Legault for Game 4 against the Grand Rapids Griffins on Friday in the Central Division final at Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Illinois.
On Thursday, the AHL’s Player Safety Committee announced that Legault has been suspended because of his dangerous hit from behind on Griffins forward Amadeus Lombardi.
Chicago leads the best-of-five series, 2-1.
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Hockey roundup: Canadiens stun Canes in Game 1; Michigan adds Flyers prospect
Reporting by Detroit News staff and wires / The Detroit News
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