New Jersey’s Michael McLeod reacts after scoring a goal against the New York Rangers during the second period of Game 7 Monday night in Newark, N.J. Adam Hunger/Associated Press
NEWARK, N.J. — Unexpected hero Akira Schmid rebounded from his only bad game and made 31 saves in Game 7 to lead the New Jersey Devils to a 4-0 victory over the New York Rangers on Monday night in an entertaining first-round playoff series.
Michael McLeod and Tomas Tatar scored second-period goals in the series decider and Erik Haula and Jesper Bratt added insurance goals in the third in the game between the longtime Hudson River rivals.
Coming off a franchise best 52-win season, the Devils will open the Eastern Conference semifinals on Wednesday against the Metropolitan Division-winning Hurricanes in Raleigh, North Carolina. Game 2 in the best-of-seven series is on Friday night.
Igor Shesterkin was outstanding in defeat, stopping 20 shots, including Jack Hughes’ breakaway late in a scoreless first period.
Schmid who had played in a total of 24 regular-season games, was the difference in this series, posting two shutouts. After New York had a pair of 5-1 wins in the opening two games in New Jersey against starter Vitek Vanecek, Devils Coach Lindy Ruff switched to the 22-year-old Swiss netminder.
Over the next five games, Schmid went 4-1, allowing a total of two goals in his first three games, including a 4-0 shutout in Game 5. He was driven from the net in Game 6 of a 5-2 loss in Madison Square Garden after giving up all five goals, but the Devils went with him in Game 7 and he delivered.
Schmid stopped a pair of Mike Zibanejad power-play blasts in the first period and made a great glove save on Vincent Trocheck with the score still 2-0 in the third period.
New Jersey broke things open midway through the second period on plays set up by playoff veteran Ondrej Palat and defenseman John Marino.
With the Rangers about to go on a power play, Palat, who won two Stanley Cup with Tampa Bay, outworked a slipping Chris Kreider and star defenseman Adam Fox along the right boards for a loose puck. He skated toward the net, slid a pass under a sliding Zibanejad and found McLeod, who patiently skated around Shesterkin and deposited a backhander into an empty net at 9:53 for a short-handed goal. It was his first goal since January.
Marino took a cross-ice pass from Nico Hischier at the Rangers’ right point later in the period, swept in on Shesterkin and had the puck slide off his stick to the corner. He retrieved it, and threw a blind pass toward the crease that found Tartar for quick shot into the net at 15:39.
Haula scored his fourth goal of the series with 5:33 left in the third period to send the send the crowd into a frenzy. Bratt added an empty-net goal with 3:19 to go.
Schmid and Shesterkin were the story of the scoreless opening period. Shesterkin stopped Hughes on a breakaway with three minutes left in the period while Schmid stopped Zibanejad twice during New York’s three extra-man chances in the opening 20.
NOTES
FLAMES: The Calgary Flames fired Coach Darryl Sutter, the latest major change at the NHL club after a disappointing season.
The Flames missed the playoffs this season after posting a 38-27-17 record.
Sutter’s departure comes two weeks after former Flames general manager Brad Treliving turned down a contract extension and parted ways with the team.
Flames president of hockey operations and interim GM Don Maloney said at that time that all aspects of the organization would be reviewed, including Sutter’s future.
Sutter, who replaced Geoff Ward midway through the shortened 2020-21 season, signed a multi-year contract extension with Calgary before this season after leading Calgary to a 50-21-11 record and a first-round playoff win in 2021-22.
Monday’s move ends Sutter’s second tenure with the Flames.
Sutter replaced Greg Gilbert behind Calgary’s bench on Dec. 28, 2002, and added GM duties after the end of the 2002-03 season.
He led Calgary to its most recent Stanley Cup Final appearance in the 2003-04 season, then stepped down as head coach to focus on his duties as general manager after the 2005-06 season.
Sutter resigned as Flames GM on Dec. 28, 2010. He later won two Stanley Cup titles as head coach of the Los Angeles Kings in 2011-12 and 2013-14.
“On behalf of ownership and all Calgary Flames fans, we want to thank Darryl for his cumulative years of service to the Calgary Flames and to the community at large,” John Bean, president and chief executive officer of Calgary Sports and Entertainment Corporation, said in a statement.
Calgary underwent a major reworking in the offseason. Johnny Gaudreau signed with Columbus and another star forward, Matthew Tkachuk, was traded to Florida.
The Flames invested a combined $133 million and 15 contract years in Jonathan Huberdeau, acquired in the Tkachuk deal, and free agent Nazem Kadri, but the duo fell well short of filling the offensive void left by Gaudreau and Tkachuk.
WILD: Center Joel Eriksson Ek, whose participation in the first-round NHL playoff series loss to Dallas was limited to just one shift, was trying to play with a broken left leg that he wound up having surgery to fix.
Eriksson Ek revealed that he suffered a fractured fibula, the smaller of the two bones in the lower leg, from a shot he blocked April 6 at Pittsburgh. Eriksson Ek missed the last four regular-season games and the first two games of the series against the Stars before being cleared April 21 for Game 3.
His return lasted only 19 seconds, and he had the procedure after that.
“I was skating for I don’t know how many days before,” Eriksson Ek said. “I felt good, and then just first shift, yeah, it didn’t hold up.”
The Stars eliminated the Wild in Game 6 with a 4-1 win Friday. Eriksson Ek would have potentially returned at some point had the Wild advanced. The presence of the seventh-year veteran was particularly missed on the power play and penalty kill units that struggled against the Stars.
STARS: Joe Pavelski was on the ice with the second line for the Dallas Stars, who are getting ready to play a second-year team in the second round of the NHL playoffs.
While Pavelski appears set to play in the series opener against the Seattle Kraken on Tuesday night, it looks like the veteran 38-year-old center won’t immediately go back on the top line after missing the last five games of the opening round against Minnesota while in concussion protocol.
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