Joffrey Lupul netted a rebound during a power play 6:06 into overtime in Game 7 to lift the Philadelphia Flyers past Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals 3-2 on Tuesday to reach the conference semifinals.
The Flyers led the best-of-seven series Eastern Conference first-round series 3-1 before allowing the Capitals to pull even.
Lupul found space in front of the net to get a backhander past Cristobal Huet for his first postseason goal after Washington’s goalie had deflected Kimmo Timonen’s shot.
PHOTO: AP
There were 9 seconds left in the Flyers’ man advantage after defenseman Tom Poti was sent off for tripping — the first penalty since the second period in a rough-and-tumble game that suited Philadelphia’s style.
The Flyers avoided what would have been a monumental collapse and won a playoff series for the first time since before the lockout: In 2004, they reached the Eastern Conference finals.
Now Philadelphia, which had the worst record in franchise history last season and the fewest points in the NHL, will play the top-seeded Montreal Canadiens in the conference semifinals.
Washington, meanwhile, dropped to 1-5 in Game 7 and is still waiting for its first playoff series victory since 1998, when it made it to the Stanley Cup finals.
The Capitals will have to take solace in getting to the postseason for the first time since 2003, managing a remarkable turnaround under career minor league coach Bruce Boudreau, who took over for the fired Glen Hanlon on Thanksgiving with the team 6-14-1 and last in the 30-team NHL.
San Jose 5, Calgary 3
At San Jose, California, veteran San Jose center Jeremy Roenick had two goals and two assists, including the tying and go-ahead scores midway through the Sharks’ four-goal second period, in a victory over the Calgary Flames in Game 7 of their first-round playoff series.
Evgeni Nabokov made 19 saves for second-seeded San Jose in front of a deafening crowd at the first Game 7 in Shark Tank history.
Bologna on Thursday advanced past Empoli to reach their first Coppa Italia final in more than half a century. Thijs Dallinga’s 87th-minute header earned Bologna a 2-1 win and his side advanced 5-1 on aggregate. Giovanni Fabbian opened the scoring for Bologna with a header seven minutes in. Then Viktor Kovalenko equalized for Empoli in the 30th minute by turning in a rebound to finish off a counterattack. Bologna won the first leg 3-0. In the May 14 final in Rome, Bologna are to face AC Milan, who eliminated city rivals Inter 4-1 on aggregate following a 3-0 win on Wednesday. Bologna last reached the
If the Wild finally break through and win their first playoff series in a decade, Minnesota’s top line likely will be the reason. They were all over the Golden Knights through the first two games of their NHL Western Conference quarter-finals series, which was 1-1 going back to Minnesota for Game 3 today. The Wild tied the series with a 5-2 win on Tuesday. Matt Boldy had three goals and an assist in the first two games, while Kirill Kaprizov produced two goals and three assists. Joel Eriksson Ek, who centers the line, has yet to get on the scoresheet. “I think the biggest
The Minnesota Timberwolves, with so many promising performances spoiled by late mistakes fresh in their memory bank, sure timed this strong finish well. Jaden McDaniels scored a career playoff-high 30 points and spearheaded Minnesota’s stifling defense on an ailing Luka Doncic, and the Timberwolves beat the Los Angeles Lakers 116-104 to take a 2-1 lead in the best-of-seven Western Conference first-round series in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on Friday night. “Jaden never looks tired. He looks like he could play 48 minutes,” said teammate Anthony Edwards, who had 29 points, eight rebounds and eight assists. Julius Randle added 22 points for the Wolves, who outscored
From a commemorative jersey to a stadium in his name, Argentine soccer organizers are planning a slew of tributes to their late “Captain” Pope Francis, eulogized as the ultimate team player. Tributes to the Argentine pontiff, a lifelong lover of the game, who died on Monday at the age of 88, have been peppered with soccer metaphors in his homeland. “Francisco. What a player,” the Argentine Football Federation (AFA) said, describing the first pope from Latin America and the southern hemisphere as a generational talent who “never hogged the ball” and who showed the world “the importance of having an Argentine captain,
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