THE SKINNY
WASHINGTON CAPITALS AT NEW YORK ISLANDERS When: Saturday, 3 p.m., Sportsnet The series: Capitals lead 3-2. The skinny: Tom Wilson isn’t too worried about returning to the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum for Game 6. The 21-year-old terror for the Capitals pretty much christened himself Public Enemy No. 1 when he knocked Lubomir Visnovsky out of the series and perhaps into the atmosphere in Game 4. Then, two nights later, he dropped the gloves with Islanders centre Anders Lee, who’d had all of one scrap during the regular season and scored 25 goals to Wilson’s four. The Capitals are not winning this series quietly; nor are the Islanders going down meekly. In fact, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman has suggested there will be a stronger security presence on Saturday. If it’s the last game at the Coliseum, they don’t want fans to goon it up — and steal all the seats. DETROIT RED WINGS AT TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING When: Saturday, 6 p.m., CBC The series: Tied 2-2. The skinny: In just under eight minutes, the Lightning went from being on the ropes to gaining back home-ice advantage. Funny how the playoffs work. It’s also funny that the key corps of the Lightning, which is so young, also has a lot of experience. Not NHL playoff experience. But the experience that key contributors Tyler Johnson and Ondrej Palat have with head coach Jon Cooper, stretching back to when they were all in the AHL. Now, all eyes are on Cooper, who was considered the best coach not in the NHL when the Lightning hired him. He’ll have the last line change at home. This could make all the difference. It certainly could for scoreless Steven Stamkos. NASHVILLE PREDATORS AT CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS When: Saturday, 8 p.m., Sportsnet The series: Blackhawks lead 3-2. The skinny: Yesterday we brought you emerging NHL playoff star Vladimir Tarasenko. Today we bring you emerging NHL playoff star Filip Forsberg. Jilted by the voters for the Calder Trophy, Forsberg quietly responded in Game 5 by scoring three goals and single-handedly ruining the evening for the used-to-winning Blackhawks. “I don’t think our guys are ready to go home,” said Peter Laviolette, who inherited the club from Barry Trotz — the franchise’s only previous head coach — and infused them with offensive enthusiasm. Finally it paid off. And now it’s quite possible that the Blackhawks will abandon out-of-nowhere goaltending hero Scott Darling and return to Corey Crawford, the 2013 Stanley Cup champion. VANCOUVER CANUCKS AT CALGARY FLAMES When: Saturday, 9 p.m., CBC The series: Flames lead 3-2. The skinny: The Canucks, who on two separate occasions in 2011 were a game away from winning their first Stanley Cup, had gone from being the best team in the game to, arguably, the worst-performing NHL playoff team in three post-seasons since. But the Canucks showed resolve in Game 5, pelting Jonas Hiller relentlessly and, finally, getting to the Flames goalie. The Sedin brothers, long criticized for not showing up when it matters most, have carried the Canucks when so many teammates have failed to show up. So will the Canucks’ experience count for something in Game 6? Or do they just have to continue to outwork the Flames?