If Sunday was any indication, the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs could be over in a flash.
The Ducks still haven't lost in six games, thanks again to strong performances from stars Corey Perry and Ryan Getzlaf, who each had two assists. And Chicago's own battle-tested dynamic duo of Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane combined for three goals as the Blackhawks took advantage of Minnesota's mental lapses.
MORE: Odds on Rangers-Caps | PHOTOS: Second round gallery
Oh. And speaking of star power, Steven Stamkos finally brought to an end his playoffs-long power outage, scoring a goal with two assists to lead the Lightning's six-goal surge against the Canadiens as they head home with a 2-0 series lead. But the Canadiens wouldn't go down without a fight ... with the refs.
Lightning 6, Canadiens 2 (Tampa Bay leads series 2-0)
Takeaway: The Lightning rekindled their power-play prowess, scoring four goals in eight chances with the man advantage. It was an impressive showing for the league's most potent offense, which scored on the power play at an 18.8 percent clip in the regular season but had been 1-for-26 in the playoffs.
Sloppy play by the Canadiens made it all possible. They racked up 53 penalty minutes on the eight calls, including a game misconduct for Brandon Prust toward the end of the game, which generated a little post-game controversy (see below). After the Habs scored in the first period for the first time this postseason, the Lightning rattled off five unanswered goals. It was the first time goalie Carey Price allowed six goals in a game all season.
Coincidentally enough, the only active team that was worse than the Lightning on the power play in these playoffs before Sunday were the Canadiens. They went 0 for 3 in Game 2.
Sweet, sweet powerplay success. #MTLvsTBL #StanleyCup https://t.co/UdkXsqxgux
— NHL (@NHL) May 4, 2015Quotable: Prust, asked about the team's penalty trouble, was less than complimentary of referee Brad Watson after the game: "He came to the box and called me every name in the book. He called me a piece of you-know-what, a mother f'er, coward. (He) said he’d drive me right out of this building. ... He teed me up. That’s the ref he is. He tries to play God. He tries to control the game and he did that tonight.”
Highlight: Stamkos' first goal of the playoffs was about as pretty as you might expect. He ended a drought of 11 playoff games without a goal dating to last year.
Next up: Wednesday at Tampa Bay, 7 p.m., USA
Blackhawks 4, Wild 1 (Chicago leads series 2-0)
Takeaway: With Kane, Toews and the like, if you give the Blackhawks enough chances, they're going to take advantage. The Wild are learning this lesson the hard way.
Mental mistakes were the crux for the Wild on Sunday, and the Blackhawks — Toews and Kane especially — exploited them, piling up four goals in a game where the score might as well have been 8-1 with how well Chicago protected its lead in the third period. The game didn't start out that way. It was boring. Boy, was it boring. The teams combined for one measly shot in the game's first eight minutes and the Blackhawks held a 9-6 advantage at the period's end.
After building a 2-0 lead in the second period, the Blackhawks had the game all but locked up. They improved to 28-0-0 when leading after two periods this season. Corey Crawford, who was pulled for three games in the first round, was at his best while making 30 saves.
Quotable: Wild coach Mike Yeo on mental mistakes: "It was not a personnel thing tonight. It was a between the ears thing."
Highlight: An uncharacteristic Ryan Suter turnover led to a shorthanded 2-on-0 for Toews and Marian Hossa. You do the math.
Superstar Shortie. #StanleyCup https://t.co/Ey8nCJ80Fv
— NHL (@NHL) May 4, 2015Next up: Tuesday at Minnesota, 8 p.m., NBCSN
Ducks 3, Flames 0 (Anaheim leads series 2-0)
Takeaway: For the second time in franchise history, the Ducks have won their first six playoff games. The last time they did that: 2007, when they won the Stanley Cup.
The Ducks certainly are playing well enough to warrant comparisons to 2007. Perry and Getzlaf, two players who were on that team, continued their dominance and have now combined for 23 points in six games. The Ducks as a team have outscored opponents 25-10 in that span. And with Frederik Anderson playing some of the best hockey — he made 30 saves Sunday for his first career playoff shutout — it's difficult to pinpoint a weakness for the Ducks.
Quotable: “You’re always in a series until you start losing at home,” Flames winger David Jones said. “That’s the way we’re going to look at it. It would have been nice to pick up one here. We’re going to have to win here eventually, but going home, in front of our fans, we’ve just got to worry about Game 3 and get a ‘W’ there and hopefully carry some momentum into Game 4.”
Highlight: Karri Ramo absolutely robs Ryan Getzlaf on a 2-on-1 Ducks scoring chance early in the first period. This was an ongoing theme for Ramo, who made big save after big save, stopping 31 of 33. But it was all for naught.
Robbery by Ramo. #ANAvsCGY #StanleyCup https://t.co/YhbT6jjr4M
— NHL (@NHL) May 4, 2015Next up: Tuesday at Calgary, 9:30 p.m., USA
Three stars
3. Patrick Kane, F, Blackhawks: Kane's two-goal game was his fourth multi-goal performance in the last two postseasons. Nobody has more in that span.
2. Frederik Anderson, G, Ducks: Anderson has allowed just 10 goals on 361 shots so far in these playoffs.
1. Steven Stamkos, F, Lightning: If Stamkos' three-point game isn't just lightning in a bottle, how far can he take high-powered Tampa Bay with more performances like Sunday?
Injury report
Jiri Hudler and Michael Ferland, F, Flames: Hudler and Ferland both were questionable heading into Sunday with undisclosed injuries that prevented them from finishing Game 1. Hudler played, skated 17:17 and was a minus-2 while Ferland was held out as a game-time decision. After the game, Flames coach Bob Hartley said Ferland is still day to day.
Justin Fontaine, F, Wild: A lower-body injury kept Fontaine out of the lineup for Game 2. He was replaced in the lineup by Erik Haula, who contributed a shot on goal and two hits in 8:49 of ice time.
Cedric Paquette, F, Lightning: Paquette skated just one shift during the second period of Sunday's Game 2 and sat out the rest of the game with an undisclosed injury.
Monday’s game
(All times Eastern)
Rangers at Capitals, 7:30, NBCSN