The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
STANLEY CUP QUALIFIERS ROUNDUP
Islanders 4, Panthers 2
Jordan Eberle scored twice, including the go-ahead goal, and the New York Islanders rallied to a 4-2 win over the Florida Panthers and take a 2-0 lead in their best-of-five NHL preliminary round playoff series on Tuesday.
Ryan Pulock and Matt Martin also scored, and Semyon Varlamov stopped 26 shots in a game New York overcame a pair of one-goal deficits.
Mike Hoffman had a goal and assist and captain Aleksander Barkov also scored for Florida, which is one loss from going one-and-done in the playoffs for a fifth consecutive time.
Predators 4, Coyotes 2
Ryan Johansen had a goal and an assist, Jusse Saros stopped 24 shots and the Nashville Predators beat the Arizona Coyotes 4-2 Tuesday to even their Stanley Cup qualifier series.
Predators coach John Hynes stuck with Saros after the Finnish goalie gave up four goals on 37 shots in the opener. Saros responded with a strong Game 2 performance, turning away multiple flurries in the first two periods before giving up goals to Clayton Keller and Lawson Crouse 9 seconds apart late in the third.
Nashville had the early jump after falling into a three-goal hole to lose Game 1, scoring on goals by Nick Bonino and Johansen in a span of three minutes of the first period.
Maple Leafs 3, Blue Jackets 0
Auston Matthews and John Tavares scored and the Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Columbus Blue Jackets 3-0 on Tuesday to even their best-of-five qualifying series at one game.
Toronto defenseman Jake Muzzin was taken off the ice on a stretcher with 1:52 left in the game after his head made violent contact with Columbus’ Oliver Bjorkstrand behind the Blue Jackets net. Muzzin was attended to by a trainer before more medical personnel arrived on the ice. Frederik Andersen made 20 saves for his third career playoff shutout and Morgan Rielly added an empty-net goal with 43 seconds left.