The initial stage of the 2025 Stanley Cup playoffs is ramping up, with the conclusion of many series potentially on the horizon. Wednesday evening features contests where several teams could secure their advancement.
The schedule includes two potential elimination scenarios. First, the Montreal Canadiens face the Washington Capitals; Alex Ovechkin and his team are poised to clinch the series against the Canadiens.
Shortly after, we could see the final game of the 2025 `Battle of Florida`. Will the Florida Panthers achieve their fourth victory, or can the Tampa Bay Lightning extend the series to 3-2?
Finally, the St. Louis Blues visit the Winnipeg Jets in a series currently tied 2-2 after four games. This matchup includes noteworthy goaltending performances, particularly the ongoing struggles of Vezina Trophy candidate Connor Hellebuyck.
Below you`ll find previews for the upcoming games with statistical insights, summaries of Tuesday`s results, and highlights of the top performers from that night.
Matchup Notes
Montreal Canadiens at Washington Capitals
Game 5 (Washington leads 3-1)
Historically, teams holding a 3-1 series advantage have won the series 90.8% of the time in Stanley Cup playoff history. The Capitals` record in this situation is 8-5, which is 62%.
Cole Caufield has been very active, registering 21 shots on goal, second-most in the playoffs (behind Nathan MacKinnon`s 31). He has also had 11 shot attempts blocked, tied for second-most, trailing Jack Eichel.
Rookie defenseman Lane Hutson is the sixth first-year blueliner in playoff history to record at least five assists in his debut postseason series, joining a list that includes Ray Bourque (1980), Janne Niinimaa (1997), Erik Karlsson (2010), Marc-Andre Gragnani (2011), and Quinn Hughes (2020).
Alex Ovechkin holds the record for most goals in NHL regular-season history and ranks 13th on the all-time playoff scoring list with 75 goals. His next goal would tie him with Mario Lemieux for 12th place.
Anthony Beauvillier is the first player in Capitals history to record an assist in each of his first four playoff games with the team and the fourth with at least one point, following Dave Christian (five games in 1984), Adam Oates (four games in 1998), and Mike Knuble (five games in 2010).
Florida Panthers at Tampa Bay Lightning
Game 5 (Florida leads 3-1)
In the 2025 playoffs overall, home teams boast a 23-10 record. However, in the Battle of Florida series, the trend has reversed, with the road team winning three of the four games played so far.
The Panthers have a perfect 5-0 record all-time when leading a playoff series 3-1, having closed out three previous series in Game 5. The Lightning are 1-5 all-time in best-of-seven series when trailing 1-3.
Lightning forward Jake Guentzel is tied with Brad Marchand for the fourth-most playoff goals since 2017 (40), trailing only Nathan MacKinnon (51), Leon Draisaitl (44), and Brayden Point (44).
Andrei Vasilevskiy has improved his performance after a tough Game 1. He allowed just five combined goals in Games 2-4, achieving a .936 save percentage in those contests, compared to allowing six goals in Game 1 with a .647 save percentage.
Matthew Tkachuk shares the Panthers` goal-scoring lead in this series with Nate Schmidt (three goals). Tkachuk has scored 20 goals in 48 career playoff games with Florida, placing him third in franchise history behind Sam Reinhart (22 goals in 59 games) and Carter Verhaeghe (27 goals in 65 games).
With each game and victory, Sergei Bobrovsky extends his lead in games played (47) and wins (31) among all goalies since the beginning of the 2023 playoffs.
St. Louis Blues at Winnipeg Jets
Game 5 (Series tied 2-2)
Jets goalie Connor Hellebuyck has encountered another difficult stretch in the postseason. He allowed a combined 11 goals in the last two games and has now given up four or more goals in 10 of 14 starts over the past three postseasons. This 71% rate contrasts sharply with his regular-season rate of 17% for the same statistic over that period.
After a strong start to the series with five points in the first two games (both Jets wins), Mark Scheifele has been held pointless in the subsequent two losses. Kyle Connor performed slightly better, recording four points in the first two games but only scoring one goal in the two losses that followed.
Despite being outshot 31-23 by the Jets in Game 4, Jordan Binnington was solid in goal for the Blues, stopping all but one shot. Overall in this postseason, Binnington holds a .907 save percentage and a 2.29 goals-against average. For comparison, during the Blues` Stanley Cup run in 2019, he finished with a .914 save percentage and a 2.46 goals-against average.
Cam Fowler, acquired mid-season, is participating in his first postseason since 2017 and is making an immediate impact. He leads the Blues with eight points (one goal, seven assists) through the first four games. Fowler`s previous career-high playoff point total was 10 in 16 games during the 2015 playoffs.
Three Stars from Tuesday Night
1. Linus Ullmark
Goaltender, Ottawa Senators
Ullmark earned his first career playoff shutout, becoming only the second goalie in Senators franchise history (joining Craig Anderson) to record a shutout in a potential elimination game.
2. Sebastian Aho
Center, Carolina Hurricanes
Scored two goals, including the overtime winner, as part of a three-point night to propel the Hurricanes into the second round with a 5-4 victory. The Hurricanes staged a comeback, scoring three goals in four minutes in the second period to tie the game after initially trailing 3-0. This was Aho`s 10th career postseason power-play goal, tying Eric Staal for the franchise record.
3. Brady Tkachuk, Tim Stutzle
Forwards, Ottawa Senators
Tkachuk and Stutzle are the first pair of Senators teammates to each register three points while facing elimination in franchise history. They will have another opportunity in Game 6 on Thursday at home.
Tuesday`s Scores
Ottawa Senators 4, Toronto Maple Leafs 0
Toronto leads series 3-2 | Game 6 Thursday
Senators goaltender Linus Ullmark delivered a stellar performance, stopping all 29 shots faced from the Maple Leafs. Goals from Thomas Chabot and Dylan Cozens, along with empty-netters by Tim Stutzle and Brady Tkachuk, secured the win for Ottawa.
Carolina Hurricanes 5, New Jersey Devils 4 (2OT)
Carolina wins series 4-1, advances to play winner of Washington-Montreal series
A wild game in Raleigh saw eight goals scored between the teams through two periods. Goalies tightened up in the third and first overtime, but Sebastian Aho scored the game- and series-winning goal at 4:17 of the second overtime period.
Vegas Golden Knights 3, Minnesota Wild 2 (OT)
Vegas leads series 3-2 | Game 6 Thursday
The teams exchanged goals early, including a short-handed tally by William Karlsson and a power-play goal by Kirill Kaprizov on the same Minnesota power play. Mark Stone added a goal to give Vegas a 2-1 lead after the first. Matt Boldy tied the game at two early in the third. Brett Howden scored the game-winner for the Golden Knights just over four minutes into the first overtime period.
Edmonton Oilers 3, Los Angeles Kings 1
Edmonton leads series 3-2 | Game 6 Thursday
After winning the first two games, the Kings now trail the Oilers, who have eliminated them in the previous three postseasons. Andrei Kuzmenko opened the scoring for the Kings on a power play in the second period, but Evander Kane quickly responded to tie it. Mattias Janmark netted the eventual game-winner about seven minutes into the third period, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins added an empty-net goal to seal the Oilers` victory.
