The last game 7 is upon us to set up the Western Conference Finals. The Colorado Avalanche battle the San Jose Sharks in the final second-round matchup on Wednesday night. The playoffs have been a whirlwind so far, with these two series being the fourth and fifth to go to seven games. NHL Playoffs Schedule Game 7 Colorado Avalanche vs. San Jose Sharks (Series Tied 3-3) Game 7 Date: Wednesday, May 8th Wednesday, May 8th Game 7 Start Time: 9:00 PM ET 9:00 PM ET Game 7 TV Channel: NBCSN NBCSN Game 7 Live Stream: fuboTV (Watch for free) EASTERN CONFERENCE Boston Bruins vs. Columbus Blue Jackets – BRUINS WIN SERIES 4-2 Carolina Hurricanes vs. New York Islanders – HURRICANES WIN SERIES 4-0 WESTERN CONFERENCE Dallas Stars vs. St. Louis Blues – ST. LOUIS WIN SERIES 4-3 In the Eastern Conference, Carolina stormed past their second-round foe in a second-straight upset for the Wild Card seed. They’ll travel to Boston well-rested before Thursday’s game against the favored Bruins. Boston’s 4-2 series win was closer than the scoreline appears, with Tuuka Rask standing on his head to keep the Blue Jackets fury of shots out of the net. The Bruins are well-coached but may not be recuperated enough to take advantage of their home ice. We recommend interesting sports viewing and streaming opportunities. If you sign up to a service by clicking one of the links, we may earn a referral fee.<doc-sep>And then there were four. The San Jose Sharks will be representing the Pacific Division in the Western Conference Final, facing off against the St. Louis Blues in Game 1 on Saturday. But to wrap up their round two series against the Colorado Avalanche tonight, the Sharks dominated the first two periods of play, taking an early lead courtesy of returning Captain Joe Pavelski. The Sharks found opportunities and jumped on them, especially after Nathan MacKinnon lost and edge and fell into the boards, missing much of the first period. At the end of two, the Sharks held a 3-1 lead that could’ve been a lot tighter if not for an offside challenge that actually fell in Pete DeBoer’s favor. An additional Avalanche goal early in the third kept things as anxiety-inducing as ever and the Avalanche made a huge push that forced the Sharks into 20 minutes of defense. They held on for the incredible 3-2 win. Onto the next. Hello folks, it’s your fearless leader here for Game 7. Little programming note: Cap is back. I sincerely hope he’s healthy and not playoffs-healthy. Also Micheal Haley is scratched. Let’s do the dang thing. First Period 19:02: Colorado is coming out strong in the neutral zone. 18:38: Erik Karlsson hooks Kerfoot. Woof. Not the time to be taking penalties. 18:09: Nathan MacKinnon goes into the boards hard . Doesn’t look like a Sharks player is responsible, just one of those unfortunate injuries, but he was holding his shoulder and in a lot of pain. That’s a huge blow to the Avalanche. 17:42: MacKinnon is off to the dressing room. 16:38: Sharks kill the hooking penalty. 16:20: Derick Brassard hooks Joe Thornton and now it’s the Sharks’ turn on the man-advantage. Joe Pavelski back on the top unit. 15:07: Jesus, the Avalanche’s penalty kill is ... physical. 14:03: PAVELSKI WITH A TIP OFF BRENT BURNS, ARE YOU KIDDING ME???? 1-0, SHARKS 12:43: God, it’s nice to watch Donskoi. He just had some nifty moves to keep the puck in the zone. 10:50: Broadcast just reminded me that the Avs only dressed 11 forwards. The MacKinnon injury could be pivotal. 8:25: HELL YEAH, TOMAS HERTL! 2-0, Sharks. 8:01: Ian Cole is called for interference on Pavelski and the Sharks get a power play. 7:14: Chaos in front of the net, including a chance for Pavelski, but nothing goes in. 6:01: Avalanche kill off the penalty. 5:37: Nathan MacKinnon back on the bench. Hilariously timed with a loud cheer as a video of Pavelski in Game 5 is shown on the jumbotron. 3:53: Martin Jones with a stop on MacKinnon, who clearly isn’t slowed down. 3:16: MacKinnon being gone for half the period really exposes the Avs as a one line team, huh? 2:20: Marcus Sorensen with a shot right into Grubauer’s chest. :43.7: After extended time in the defensive zone, the Sharks get the puck out and fire off a couple of shots. :06.8: Mikko Rantanen through traffic cuts the lead in half. 2-1, Sharks. END FIRST: Sharks 2, Avalanche 1 I didn’t particularly like the pressure the Avalanche put on at the end of the period. We’ll have to see if MacKinnon makes it through the game in terms of how his shoulder might be affecting his range of mobility. Not mad about how good the Sharks looked on the power play and how they were able to capitalize on their opportunities. Second Period 20:00: Let’s gooooooooo 18:01: Brenden Dillon with a shot, after the Sharks have an extended stay in the offensive zone. Grubauer came up huge. 17:52: Carl Soderberg hits Thornton with a high stick, Sharks are going on a power play. 16:40: Gabriel Landeskog with a short-handed chance. 15:52: Power play over. 15:32: Only now is the puck out of the offensive zone. The Sharks are dominating. 14:50: Gus Nyquist hits Rantanen with an accidental high stick, but no call on the play. 14:16: Donskoi elevates the fourth line to an entirely different level. Really great play from Melker Karlsson that results in a shot on goal. 12:11: Colin Wilson and it’s tied 2-2. The Avalanche used a lot of speed in the neutral zone to set up that chance. DeBoer is challenging for offside, which was honestly my first thought. Looks like Landeskog was still on the ice going for a change. AND NO GOAL! Sharks are still on top, 2-1. 11:32: Karlsson again, this time for slashing. Bad time for the Sharks to take a penalty. 9:32: Killed! 7:57: The Tank is SO LOUD and the Sharks are giving them every reason to be. 7:23: GOAL FOR DONSKOI! 3-1, Sharks! 5:44: Sorry folks, I’m really still buzzing from that Donskoi goal. 4:18: Line changes make me so nervous. This Avalanche team is so fast. 3:52: Pavelski and Karlsson with a two-on-one. 2:02: A faceoff in the defensive zone, Sharks did good work getting the puck out. They cannot sit back on their heels. 1:30: Karlsson just knocked Matt Nieto flat using his ass. :38.4: The Sharks are just ... clicking tonight. There’s no other word for it. They know where every other man in teal is on the ice. END SECOND: Sharks 3, Avalanche 1 Just 20 more minutes. Do some deep breathing, everybody. Third Period 19:09: Tyson Jost gets a rebound up close. Oof. 3-2, Sharks. 18:00: Good defensive effort from the Sharks, but they’re having trouble setting up offensively. 16:28: Really not kidding about the Avalanche’s speed killing the Sharks. 15:29: Avalanche have put everything into these first five minutes. They’ve got six shots already. 15:04: Logan Couture called for tripping Rantanen. Huge kill for the Sharks here. 13:04: Penalty killed. I have unclenched my jaw, which I recommend we, as a community, all should do. 9:39: The Sharks are playing wholly defensively and while they’re holding up, this makes me nervous and I hate it. The Avalanche are in control of this game suddenly. 8:24: It’s been so long since the last whistle. 5:36: I’m sorry, I truly cannot even breathe at this point. A one-goal lead is so scary??? Avs are leading shot attempts 15-2 this period. That’s insane. 2:15: Martin Jones, sweetie, I have never said a bad thing about you in my whole entire life. 2:10: Avalanche pulled Grubauer. Oh god, here we go. 1:00: OH GOD OH GOD OH GOD :41.4: THIS IS THE LONGEST MINUTE OF MY LIFE SANDSTORM, BAYBEE :14.4: oh god oh god 0:0: CONFERENCE FINAL HELL YEAH!!! ! FINAL SCORE: Sharks 3, Avalanche 2 Pregame It’s back to do-or-die mode. Tonight, the final second round series will come to an end. It’s a different feeling than the last time the San Jose Sharks stared into the face of elimination. Before Game 7 against the Vegas Golden Knights, elimination felt almost certain. The Knights had put up a hard fight for the entire series and the Sharks looked broken, especially in the mouths of a couple of key players. The win they earned was as improbable as it was incredible. This feels different. Looking rejuvenated, the Sharks have been good this series — at times great, even. Undoubtedly the better team overall. But they also haven’t been without their share of mistakes, or else we wouldn’t be here, one bad bounce away from elimination. Those moments of brilliance need to come together completely tonight. If Game 6 taught us anything, it’s that it’s not enough to just be the better team. The Sharks need to be full on dominant — and maybe have a little luck on their side, too. Go get ‘em, boys. Lines Sharks Pavelski will take part of warm ups and a decision will be made after. #SJSharks pic.twitter.com/e6pXUFBjXq — Fear the Fin (@fearthefin) May 8, 2019 Expected scratches: Dylan Gambrell, Tim Heed, Radim Simek, Antti Suomela, Lukas Radil Injured reserve: Joe Pavelski*(undisclosed) *game time decision Avalanche (via Mile High Hockey) Gabriel Landeskog — Nathan MacKinnon — Alexander Kerfoot Colin Wilson — Carl Soderberg — Mikko Rantanen Tyson Jost — J.T. Compher — Matt Nieto Gabriel Bourque — Derick Brassard Ian Cole — Erik Johnson Nikita Zadorov — Tyson Barrie Samuel Girard — Cale Makar Patrik Nemeth<doc-sep>Colorado Avalanche all-star center Nathan MacKinnon exited Wednesday’s Game 7 against the Sharks early in the first period with an apparent upper-body injury. MacKinnon was fighting for a puck when he crashed into the boards, bracing himself with his right shoulder during an Avs power play. He immediately fell to the ice and headed to the bench. A few minutes later, he headed to the locker room with his shoulder slouched. MacKinnon returned to the ice with just under four minutes remaining in the opening period. MacKinnon has 13 points (six goals) in 11 playoff games this season.<doc-sep>
CLICK HERE if you are having a problem viewing the photos or video on a mobile device SAN JOSE — As much as the Sharks needed Joe Pavelski, Martin Jones and Joonas Donskoi to beat the Colorado Avalanche 3-2 on Wednesday in Game 7 of their second round playoff series at SAP Center, they also needed the eagle eyes of Dan Darrow. Immediately after it appeared that Colin Wilson had tied the game 2-2 at the 7:49 mark of the second period, Darrow, the Sharks’ video coach, notified coaches on San Jose’s bench that the Avalanche’s Gabriel Landeskog might have been offside. The Sharks believed that before the puck had entered the Sharks’ zone after a giveaway by Barclay Goodrow, Landeskog was still inside the blue line. Landeskog was away from the play and on the other side of the ice about to step onto Colorado’s bench for a line change. The Sharks challenged the goal, and after a review, the NHL’s Situation Room determined, according to its news release, that Landeskog “did not legally tag up at the blue line prior to the puck entering the offensive zone. The decision was made in accordance to Rule 83.3 (i), “All players of the offending team clear the zone at the same instant (skate contact with the blue line) permitting the attacking players to re-enter the attacking zone…” Here’s the NHL rule that nullified COL goal due to offside. Landeskog either had to tag up and clear the offensive zone before any teammates re-entered on the delay or he had to get both feet off the ice on to bench. One on bench and one on ice sealed disallowed goal fate. https://t.co/rFtWBcgpU7 — Bob McKenzie (@TSNBobMcKenzie) May 9, 2019 The original call was overturned, and instead of a tie game, it remained 2-1 Sharks with 7:46 — when the off-side infraction occurred — left in the second period. Had the goal been allowed to stand, the Avalanche would have gone on the power play with the Sharks being called for delay of game. Donskoi scored at the 12:37 mark of the second period to give the Sharks a 3-1 lead. Wilson assisted on Tyson Jost’s goal 51 seconds into the third period, but the Avalanche could get no closer. “Tough call, because if you’re wrong, it’s a penalty,” Sharks coach Pete DeBoer said. “But it was a game-changing call, and we’ve had those go against us this year at different points. It was a huge call and a gutsy call by our video coach, Dan Darrow, who gets big props for that.” Landeskog and Avalanche coach Jared Bednar gave their perspectives on the play. “I was just as surprised as anybody,” Landeskog said. “I came off and two seconds later we score. I didn’t think anything of it, to be honest with you. And then you wonder why they weren’t dropping the puck, and obviously I was still on the ice. We saw some replays on the bench and from what we saw, it could have gone either way. “I don’t know if I’ve seen that before. I mean, it’s a clumsy mistake. Get off the ice. I wish first of all I didn’t turn the puck over, it’s inside the blue line. But then again, if I didn’t turn the puck over, then Nate wouldn’t have got that chance to give it to Willy. So there’s a whole sequence of events. If I could have done something different on that play, I would have jumped the boards a lot quicker.” “I would say it’s pretty rare,” Bednar said. “In a Game 7, even more so. It just doesn’t have a big affect. That player has nothing to do with the play that’s going on. It just seems like such a minute detail, whether he’s onside or offside. So it’s strange. It’s strange. It’s something we could have done without tonight, no question.” Just here to say I would have never let a gate on my bench stay closed that long if I played for the Avalanche. Landeskog would have had a water bottle in hand getting a foot rub in that amount of time he was left hanging. — Paul Bissonnette (@BizNasty2point0) May 9, 2019 In those type of situations, DeBoer said Darrow’s opinion carries a ton of weight. Other coaches will give their opinion, but ultimately, Darrow’s viewpoint is the one that matters the most. “Dan is the lead on that.