The Hurricanes are the first team to advance to the second round, while the Penguins prevented the Flyers from joining them there – at least for today. Meanwhile, the Stars and Wild series is tightly contested as we expected.

Carolina 4, Ottawa 2 (Hurricanes win series 4-0)

Sebastian Aho scored two goals in the third period of this game, one of which was the eventual game-winner and the other into an empty net. Aho was also credited with five shots and two hits.

The Taylor Hall – Logan Stankoven – Jackson Blake line was at it again. Hall and Stankoven scored the other two goals for the Hurricanes, giving Stankoven four goals and Hall two goals in the four-game series. This line was also the most dominant for the Canes in Game 4 with a 75.0 CF% (shot attempt for percentage). Hall had an impressive series, leading the Canes with seven points in the four games. The 23-year-old Stankoven, who reached 20 goals for the first time in his career this season, could begin his fourth-year breakout next season when he should reach 200 career games. Even if Stankoven is not a top-line PP1 player for a deep Canes roster, he should still be regarded as having sleeper potential.

Nikolaj Ehlers missed Game 4 because of a lower-body injury. The Canes should have a few days before their next series starts, which could give him some time to rest if the injury is minor.

Frederik Andersen has impressed in this series, allowing just five total goals with a 1.10 GAA and .955 SV%. The 36-year-old Andersen has battled injuries in recent seasons, but he looks well enough to be in high demand as a short-term free agent this offseason. The Canes' puck possession system might work in his favor, so this success may not carry over to next season with a different club.

A friend of mine texted me before the series to say "I can't wait for the annual Rod Brind'Amour – 'the series could have gone either way and I felt we were the better team, but the calls just kept going their way.'" That still might happen, but not today. The Canes' inability to get out of the Eastern Conference in recent seasons was a major reason that some (including myself, full disclosure) thought Ottawa could pull off an upset. Although the games in this series were generally close, Carolina did not trail at any point during the series. Carolina seems like a confident team that didn't budge when Ottawa tried to bring the pain in a second period that got crazy, even scoring the first goal not long after the shenanigans.

TYLER KLEVEN ABSOLUTELY LEVELLED ALEXANDER NIKISHIN AND THE CANES TOOK EXCEPTION 😵🫨 pic.twitter.com/yBGMkYzSdJ

— Gino Hard (@GinoHard_) April 25, 2026

Alexander Nikishin was forced to leave this game after taking the hit from Tyler Kleven. After the game, Brind'Amour thought that Nikishin had a concussion, but he didn't have an update.

BRADY TKACHUK STARTS THROWING HIS WEIGHT AROUND AND CANADIAN TIRE CENTRE IS ROCKING 🫨💥 pic.twitter.com/4mgUWkH7yP

— Gino Hard (@GinoHard_) April 25, 2026

Brady Tkachuk had five hits in this game and 13 total hits in the series, but he also finished the series without either a goal or an assist. For a player that has prided himself on being amped up for big games for both Ottawa and the USA, that's falling well below expectations. The fights off the opening draw are one thing, but being a great player also means scoring in the clutch. I can't imagine Sens fans are happy with the performance of their captain in this series. Tkachuk missed some games early in the season with an injury, so I guess we'll find out in the coming days whether that was an issue.

Drake Batherson scored three goals in the short series, including a goal in Game 4. Batherson also assisted on the other goal in this game. That goal was scored by Dylan Cozens, who led the Senators with 22 hits in the series.

Tim Stutzle recorded his only point of the series on an assist on the Batherson goal. He was the Senators' leading scorer during the regular season. Like Tkachuk, you can't win when your best players aren't your best players.

Carter Yakemchuk made his playoff debut with Jake Sanderson out of the lineup with a concussion. Yakemchuk assisted on both goals while playing on the Sens' top power play. Yakemchuk finished his AHL season with 40 points in 54 games, so he could very well be a full-time NHLer next season. His upside is PP1 QB, which means that Sanderson could have some competition in the rear-view mirror someday.

The Senators can't blame Linus Ullmark for the four-game sweep. Ullmark finished the series with a 2.03 GAA and a .931 SV%. The Senators didn't give him the run support he needed, scoring a grand total of five goals in the series.

Minnesota 3, Dallas 2 (series tied 2-2)

Matt Boldy scored with less than a minute left in the first overtime period to even this series as it heads back to Dallas for Game 5 on Tuesday. Boldy has three goals in this series, and his 21 shots is second to only Jason Robertson during the playoffs.

NO KICKING MOTION ON THIS ONE‼️

MATT BOLDY WITH THE REDIRECT WINS IT FOR THE WILD AND TIES THE SERIES 🚨 pic.twitter.com/dN8sYag42V

— Gino Hard (@GinoHard_) April 26, 2026

Brock Faber scored a goal and added an assist in Game 4, giving him five points in the series so far. Marcus Foligno scored the other goal for the Wild, while Kirill Kaprizov recorded two assists.

Robertson and Miro Heiskanen scored the Dallas goals, while Matt Duchene and Mikko Rantanen each picked up two assists. Duchene is the co-leader in playoff points with seven points over the four games.

Nils Lundkvist left Game 4 after taking a skate to the face. After the game, Glen Gulutzan said that Lundkvist has a deep facial laceration and will be evaluated when he returns to Dallas. No word on his availability for Game 5, but this type of injury is scary.

Mats Zuccarello remained sidelined for Game 4 with an upper-body injury. Zuccarello has now missed three consecutive games.

Not a huge surprise, but this series could go either way and it appears likely to go the full seven games. Whoever wins this series could be more worn out than Colorado, assuming the Avalanche can clinch their series in Game 4 today (Sunday). I didn't watch all of this game or even all of overtime, but the Wild seemed to approach overtime as a team that could not afford to be down 3-1 in the series heading to Dallas.

Pittsburgh 4, Philadelphia 2 (Flyers lead series 3-1)

Sidney Crosby and Rickard Rakell each scored a goal and added an assist to help the Penguins stave off elimination in Game 4. Kris Letang and Connor Dewar also scored for Pittsburgh. All four of these players scored their first goals of this season's playoffs. Crosby entered this game with just one assist over his first three games.

Arturs Silovs was given the start over Stuart Skinner for Game 4, and it seemed to be the right call. Silovs stopped 28 of 30 shots he faced to earn a quality start. You could call this a desperation move if you want, but I'm perfectly fine with Dan Muse switching to Silovs here. Stuart Skinner allowed four goals in Game 3, and he's not exactly known for being outstanding during the playoffs. Meanwhile, Silovs has big-game success with a Calder Cup win, a bronze medal for Latvia at the World Hockey Championship, and an NHL playoff series win with the Canucks.

For the Flyers, Denver Barkey scored his first career playoff goal, while Travis Konecny scored the other goal.

Despite dealing with an injury, Dan Vladar started Game 4 for the Flyers. Vladar allowed three goals on 20 shots.

I had a eulogy prepared for the Penguins complete with discussion about the direction of their team with their very veteran core, but that will have to wait. The Flyers still very much hold the upper hand in this series and outshot the Penguins 30-21 despite the loss. That being said, Game 5 is in Pittsburgh on Monday, and at this point it's still one win at a time.

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